Morgue in Augusta finally slated to open

AUGUSTA -- Amid a mass of troubles, including lack of funding, Augusta's new $4.1 million crime lab will soon be able to use its morgue.

According to officials, investigators here can stop shipping bodies to Atlanta for autopsies in September.

The delay in opening the morgue was mostly because the state didn't have the funds to staff it.

Because of that, law enforcement agencies in 15 counties had to continue to send bodies to Atlanta for autopsies until the state Legislature could come up with the money to hire a medical examiner to work in the 2,500-square-foot morgue, said Dan Kirk, chief of facilities and support operations for the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Gov. Roy Barnes added money to the 2003 budget for the morgue, and legislators approved it.

The National Association of Medical Examiners recently advertised the medical examiner position, which will become available July 1.